U.S. companies added the fewest jobs in four months in October, as construction and manufacturing firms continued to shed workers, private payroll provider ADP says in its monthly jobs report.
As The Associated Press reports, the ADP report released this morning shows that businesses added 147,000 jobs, down from 202,000 in September, a figure that was revised strongly higher.
October’s hiring, while below last year’s healthy pace, is enough to lower the unemployment rate over time. With the U.S. population aging, not as many jobs are required as in the past to keep up with population growth.
The data adds to signs that the economy is growing at a slow but sustained pace. Growth accelerated to a 2.9% annual rate in the third quarter, up from just 1.1% in the first half of the year.
Job gains have declined from last year’s average of 230,000 a month. But monthly hiring of about 150,000 “is still a good, solid number,” says Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics, which compiles the ADP data. “The labor market continues to close in on full employment.”
The hiring was led by hotels, restaurants and entertainment firms, which added 38,000 positions, followed by health care, which gained 34,000. Manufacturers shed 1,000 jobs and construction companies cut 15,000.
The ADP data covers only private businesses and often diverge from the official government figures. Economists forecast that the government’s jobs report, to be released Friday, will show a gain of 170,000 jobs, according to data provider FactSet. The unemployment rate is expected to decline to 4.9%, down from 5% in September.
